The Science Behind the Relaxation Response for IBD and IBS
By BONNIE PRESCOTT, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Staff
Mind-body techniques such as yoga and meditation have been used to treat and prevent disease for thousands of years. Collectively known as "the relaxation response," these practices put the body in a state of deep rest, and have been shown to help alleviate symptoms of stress and anxiety.
But if you think that the relaxation response is more "new age remedy" than scientifically sound medicine, think again. Recent studies by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have demonstrated that the relaxation response is firmly rooted in genetics.
"We have conducted the first comprehensive studies of how the mind can affect gene expression, linking what has been looked on as a 'soft' science with the 'hard' science of genomics," says Towia Libermann, PhD, Director of the Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology Center at BIDMC. "We're finding how changing the activity of the mind can alter the way the body produces its basic genetic instructions."
Studies by Libermann and BIDMC colleague Manoj Bhasin, PhD, in conjunction with collaborators at the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind/Body Medicine, had previously shown that relaxation response practices can produce immediate changes in the expression of genes involved in physiological functions, so that the genetic pathways involved in immune disturbances and inflammation are repressed and the pathways involved in energy production are enhanced.
Last year, the scientists took this research a step further.
In a study published in May 2015 in the scientific journal PLOS ONE, the researchers demonstrated that participation in a nine-week relaxation response training program actually altered gene expression in patients with either irritable bowel disease (IBD) or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
"Our study showed that genes responsible for causing inflammation and other immune system problems could be suppressed after the study participants underwent a period of practicing the relaxation response," says Libermann. "This was the first time we were able to show that mind-body techniques could have an impact on gene expression in a specific disease."
Both of these chronic gastrointestinal conditions produce related symptoms, including abdominal pain and changes in bowel function such as diarrhea. IBD includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, which are characterized by severe inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. Both conditions are also known to be triggered by stress.
The study included 19 patients with IBS and 29 patients with IBD. They all participated in a nine-week program that included breathing exercises, meditation and yoga. The patients met for a 1.5 hour group session every week, and practiced the exercises at home for 15 to 20 minutes each day.
The research team assessed patients' symptoms before, after and midway through the study, and also took blood samples for genetic analysis.
"At the end of the study, the participants reported that their symptoms had improved over the course of the nine-week relaxation response practice," said Libermann.
Using bioinformatics techniques, which combine computer science, statistics, mathematics and engineering to analyze and interpret biological data, Libermann and Bhasin, analyzed the blood samples and found that 119 genes were altered in patients with IBS – and more than 1,000 genes were altered in patients with IBD.
"In both IBS and IBD the molecular pathway controlled by a protein called NF-kappa B emerged as one of the most significantly affected by the relaxation response, which confirms the findings of our previous genomic studies," says Libermann. "Indeed the relaxation response reduced the expression of a number of genes directly linked to the key inflammatory processes of IBD. While the mechanisms behind IBS are less well defined, they most likely involve stress response, which could also be improved by relaxation response practice."
Libermann admits that he was skeptical when he first embarked on this line of research more than 12 years ago. "I was surprised at how such a simple, straightforward activity could significantly impact genetic behavior. But now I'm convinced."
Read a comprehensive new survey from the American Gastroenterological Association, "IBS in America" co-authored by BIDMC researcher, Dr. Anthony Lembo.
Above content provided by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. For advice about your medical care, consult your doctor.
Posted January 2016